We are delighted to announce that we have been named Best Employer at The Springboard Awards For Excellence 2025, which recognises individuals’ and organisations’ innovation and commitment to their teams, communities and the wider industry.
Following the award win, judges described our dedication to employee engagement “as a true exemplar of excellence in the hospitality industry,” as we have “demonstrated a remarkable commitment to nurturing and developing their team members.”
Our award win comes off the back of a year that has seen our 90-day retention rate average 97 per cent, with overall retention rate of the our 550-strong workforce up by 28 per cent – which is its strongest increase since 2018.
This has resulted in vacancies decreasing by 68 per cent year-on-year, with the time taken to screen and interview candidates on average taking less than seven days.
Nearly 50 employees have also completed an apprenticeship or leadership programme in the past year, while more than 70 were promoted.
The improvements have been driven by key initiatives that have been developed based on colleague feedback to aid their wellbeing, including the introduction of Wagestream for early access to earned wages, through to a science-backed reward and recognition system called the Happy Hub to boost feel-good hormones.
Elsewhere, we have invested £1.5 million in purchasing a 15-cottage complex for staff accommodation at its five-star Bovey Castle property; while an enhanced employee referral programme has been introduced where existing team members can earn up to £1,000 for each successful referral they make.
Our latest Springboard award win follows victories in the same awards in the previous two years where we collected the Employee Engagement and Health & Wellbeing categories in 2024, and Best Training Programme in 2023.
Lisa Redding, Group People Director, said: "Finding and keeping the right talent in hospitality – especially in the boutique hotel sector – is more competitive than ever. That’s why this award means so much to us. It reflects our ongoing commitment to creating a workplace where our people feel valued, supported, and able to thrive.”
Mark Chambers, Managing Director, added: “As a business, we’re not just focused on retaining great talent – we’re dedicated to helping our team grow into the next generation of hospitality leaders.
“Developing our people and our properties is a key part of our ongoing growth, and we are starting to reap the rewards of this as we are forecasting turnover of approximately £18-plus million for the financial year ending March 2025, an increase from £16.9 million from the previous year.
“Ultimately, hospitality is all about people and we’re proud to be recognised as a leader in this space.”
Last year, we were also named Small Hotel Group of the Year at the AA Hospitality Awards.
Eden Hotel Collection’s owner, the Rigby family are celebrating the 50th year of Rigby Group this year and we are delighted to be taking part in celebrations for this incredible milestone.
Rigby family names in Sunday Times 2025 Tax List as the UK’s 39th largest taxpayers
The Group has grown from a £2,000 UK venture to a £3.7bn global enterprise spanning technology, airports, real estate and hotels
SCC, IT services pioneer, was an Official Sponsor and Service provider to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games
The Family’s philanthropy supports entrepreneurship, education and disadvantaged young people.
28 January 2025 - Rigby Group, Europe's largest private technology investor and one of the UK’s most successful family companies, is celebrating the 50th anniversary of a remarkable journey that has seen it grow from humble beginnings into a global business powerhouse.
Launched with a £2,000 investment from humble beginnings in Liverpool, in five decades the company has become an international operation supporting over 9,000 employees and contractors in nine countries – working at the forefront of transformative change in technology, philanthropy and sustainable business practices. One in five colleagues have been part of Rigby Group’s success over the long-term – more than 2,000 current staff have stayed with the business for 10 or more years, with 1,000 of them reaching 20 years of service.
Founded by Sir Peter Rigby in 1975, after circumstances forced him to relinquish his dream of becoming a pilot in order to financially support his family, Rigby Group has grown into a diversified enterprise spanning technology, airports, real estate and hospitality with an annual turnover of £3.7bn. Most recently the Rigby family were recognised as the 39th largest taxpayers in the UK in the 2025 Sunday Times Tax List.
The Group’s first and flagship business, SCC - now Europe’s largest privately-owned IT services company - serves over 2,500 customers, enabling 5 million users in 50 countries. Sir Peter’s sons, Steve and James Rigby, joined the family business in the 1990s, and today lead the Group as Co-CEOs.
Long recognised for his exceptional contribution to the business community, Sir Peter was knighted in 2002 for services to IT and business in the West Midlands, before in 2021 becoming the first British-born businessman to receive France’s highest honour, the Legion d'honneur.
Sir Peter Rigby, Founder and Chairman of Rigby Group, said: "From day one, we set out to value our people, innovate for our customers, and give back to the communities we work in. As we celebrate this landmark year, those principles remain at the heart of everything we do.
“We are 100% family owned, and we are steadfastly committed to looking after our people and realising the potential of the communities they live and work in. Above all, we always try to do the right thing, and I am proud of the efforts we make to harness the UK’s skilled talent and foster innovation, growth and job opportunities.”
Eden Hotel Collection has formed a key part of The Rigby Group’s growth after it was formed by the Group in 2008, with a commitment to provide impeccable standards of service and attention to detail from the very beginning.
Mark Chambers, Managing Director at Eden Hotel Collection, commented: “The Rigby Group’s values of looking after its people and the communities it serves filters right the way down into each of Eden Hotel Collection’s boutique hotels – and is one of the key reasons that we have recently been recognised as the AA’s Small Hotel Group of the Year.
“We are proud to be part of The Rigby Group, and I’d like to congratulate Sir Peter Rigby and the wider Group on reaching such a significant milestone.”
A Year of Celebration and Reflection
To mark the 50th Anniversary, Rigby Group will hold a series of activities, events, and philanthropic initiatives throughout 2025 to celebrate its achievements and honour its employees, customers and partners.
Read more about our news:
Eden Hotel Collection, which has five luxury hotels in the Midlands and South West, have been recognised by Green Tourism – a certification that has been assessing travel, tourism and hospitality businesses’ approaches to sustainability for more than 27 years.
Expert assessors provide certification via bronze, silver and gold gradings, with two of the Collection’s hotels – Bovey Castle and Mallory Court Hotel and Spa – achieving gold.
The Arden Hotel, The Greenway Hotel and Spa, and Brockencote Hall were awarded silver.
Appointing “green champions” at each hotel to strive for a consistent approach to sustainability was key to landing the accreditation.
This has enabled each hotel to engage in and evidence practices across wide-ranging areas such as community engagement, employee health and wellbeing, and customer experiences, through to energy usage, carbon reduction and waste management.
Other achievements have seen each hotel now operating on 100% renewable energy, while the Collection’s waste last year saw 35.5% directly recycled; with 55% converted into renewable energy and 9.5% anaerobically digested.
Four of Eden Hotel Collection’s hotels now have kitchen gardens, while three hotels have introduced beehive experiences for guests, and a new meadow ‘Marion’s Garden’ has been grown at Bovey Castle.
Jayne O’Malley, Group Operations Director at Eden Hotel Collection, has worked closely with each hotel and Green Tourism’s assessors to develop the organisation’s green credentials.
Jayne said: “Sustainability is much more than simply adopting environmentally friendly practices. It’s about creating a sustainable business in every sense – from our people and our local community, through to the growth of our own organisation and our supply chain.
“Some of the properties we own and operate date back as far as the 16th century, but through our commitment to invest in sustainability, they are at the forefront of modern approaches of green hospitality, whether that is through the use of renewable energy, utilising local suppliers, or utilising on-site kitchen gardens for produce or guest experiences.
“Each of our hotels were initially graded by Green Tourism in 2023 with silver or bronze gradings – so to see each hotel making that step up one year on is testament to the commitment that our people have shown to take on board advice from the assessors to make us one of the leading hotel groups in the UK not just for a luxurious stay, but for sustainability too.”
The Green Tourism accolades follow hot on the heels of the Eden Hotel Collection being named by the AA as Small Hotel Group of the Year.
Eden – which has five hotels across the West Midlands and South West – was recognised for its consistency in quality and service delivery, and for the excellent work around its employee experience, as well as their broader efforts in tackling sustainability.
With nearly 900 guests, the AA Hospitality Awards highlight the very best in British hospitality, honouring achievements across fifteen categories – reflecting the industry’s commitment to innovation, quality and environmental responsibility.
Eden’s award win follows a year that has seen the business invest more than £3 million in venue refurbishments and colleague welfare initiatives – as well as adopting sustainability projects around food production.
This includes the recent £1.5 million refurbishment of 19 bedrooms at the four red star Mallory Court Hotel and Spa in Leamington, following the completion of £1.4 million worth of refurbishments at The Greenway Hotel and Spa in Cheltenham, which has seen a transformation of 21 bedrooms, communal areas and a new bar.
Investment has also stretched to its 500-strong workforce, including the launch of an app-based employee recognition programme called The Happy Hub, which includes activities that help to promote positive hormones – such as the ability to recognise a colleague with an e-card, an employee of the month initiative, and monetary recognitions for long service.
For guests, Eden is also commencing its “Inspired By” programme which brings to life the story of each hotel’s individual character for visitors, starting with Mallory Court whose ‘Inspired By our Gardens’ initiative sees the hotel’s workforce sharing knowledge with guests about how the hotel’s ten-acre gardens influence every aspect of the visitor experience – from dining through to décor.
The Group’s focus on growing its own produce on-site and utilising local suppliers has also continued to develop – including the introduction of a new kitchen garden at five-star Bovey Castle in Devon following the success of the kitchen garden and its tours at Mallory Court.
This complements the collection’s ability to recycle 100 per cent of its waste, with 30 per cent directly recycled, 50 per cent concerted into renewable energy, and 20 per cent processed by anaerobic digestion.
Alongside Mallory Court, The Greenway and Bovey Castle, The Eden Hotel Collection also operates the four red star Brockencote Hall Hotel in Kidderminster, and the four silver star Arden Hotel in Stratford-upon-Avon.
Mark Chambers, Managing Director at The Eden Hotel Collection, said: “The AA Hospitality Awards are the holy grail for any hospitality business, so to be recognised as the best in our field for the second time in a decade is a testament to our people and the consistent delivery of excellence across all of our hotels.
“As a business everything we do feeds into providing the highest possible quality of service – from investing in our facilities, through to helping our people to be the best versions of themselves in terms of their skillsets, but also supporting them with everyday life, too.
“Reputation and recommendations are a key tool for success for any hospitality business, so this latest award win provides a fantastic launchpad for each of our five hotels to build on the great work they are already doing in their communities to attract locals and holidaymakers alike.”
Simon Numphud, Managing Director at AA Media, expressed his pride in the resilience and creativity shown by the UK’s hospitality sector in 2024: “This incredible celebration is a true testament to the strength and innovation within our industry. The dedication and excellence demonstrated by all the hospitality teams have been nothing short of inspiring. Congratulations to all the winners, nominees, and new Rosette holders for their remarkable contributions.”
